Automatic tile-machine.



H. & J. H. BESSER.

AUTOMATIC TILE MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29, 1909.

Patented Aug. 29, 1911.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

IJOLUMIIIA PLANOHRAPII 60.,WA5IIINOTON. [L c.

ATTORNEY H. & J. H. BBSSER.

AUTOMATIC TILE MACHINE.

APPLIUATION FILED JUNE 29, 1900 Patented Aug. 29, 1911.

4 BHEETBSHEBT 2.

INVENT j/W ATTORNEY WITNESSES: W W flh I coLummA I'LANOIIRAPII cuwnsmNoTom D. c

H. 6: J. H. BESSER.

AUTOMATIC TILE MACHINE.

APPLICATION rum) mums, 1009.

1,001 ,609, Patented Aug. 29, 1911.

5 I 57 be 7m m J@\\ 7 WITNESSES: \NVE W Wag I I ATTORNEY COLUMBIAPLANUGRAPH cu.. WASHINGTON. I), I."

H. & J. H. BESSER.

AUTOMATIC TILE MACHINE.

APPLICATION IILBD JUNE 29, 1909.

1,001,609, Patented Aug. 29, 1911.

4 BEEBT8-SHEET 4.

WITNESSES: NVENTO E g fig,

W ATTORNEY COLUMBIA PLANOURAPH Cu., WASHINGTON. IL c HERMAN BESSER ANDJESSE H.

PATENT @EFTCE.

BESSER, OF ALPENA, MICHIGAN.

AUTOMATIC TILE-MACHINE.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, I'IERMAN Bnssnn and Jesse ill. Bnssnn, bothcitizens of the United States, residing at Alpena, in the county ofAlpena and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Automatic 'lile-Ivlachines; and we do hereby declare thefollowing to be a :full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same.

Our invention relates to automatic tile machines and is moreparticularly directed to that type of tile machines employing a whirlinghead or former and a cylindrical mold casing, one movable relative tothe other, whereby the former or head is caused to enter the mold toform the tile.

One object of our invention is the provision of a neat, strong, simpleand compact machine of this character, comprising a small number ofworking parts whereby access may be easily had to all parts of themachine, and lloor space is economized, as well as danger to theoperator avoided.

To these ends, the present machine avoids the use of a moving tablecarrying the molds.

Another object is the provision of a machine whereby the tile, after itis made, is not moved or jarred in any way, thus avoiding the mechanismand attention required by the use ot' a moving table.

A. further object. is the provision of a light, simple machine of fewparts, capable of a greater capacity than heretofore.

A still further object is the provision of a machine which will makeharder and more compact tile than hereto-tore.

Still another object. is the provision of a tfOlllptlCt machine wherebythe tile are made at a convenient height to enable the operator toremove and place the molds in position with ease and rapidity.

Another object is the provision of means for preventing the entrance ofextraneous material into the bearings.

A further object is the provision of a packer head and mold which centerperfectly.

Another object is the provision of a ma chine having a direct drivewhich economixes power and avoids the noise and repairs incident tomachines which are otherwise driven.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 29, 1909.

Patented Aug. 29, 1911.

Serial No. 504,982.

A further object is the provision of a machine of this nature whichall'ords no obstruction to the entrance of the material into the mold.

A still further object is the provision of a machine whereon tilethroughout a wide 'ange of sizes can be made.

To these and other ends, therefore, our invention consists in certainnovel features and combinations such as will be more tully describedhereinafter and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a side view of one embodimentof our invention, showing the mold in position to receive material, Fig.2 is a similar view showing the mold in its lowest posit ion, Fig. 3 isan end view, Fig. at a detail of the supporting or bottom ring of themold, Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the connection between the leversand the bottom ring. and Fig. 6 is a top plan view showing our invention arranged as a battery, and Fig. 7 is a detail view of a modifiedform of the lever adjacent the driving gears.

()ur invention in brief, comprises a whirling or rotary packer head orformer, a pair of rings, the upper of which is movable relative to thelower, levers 't'or actuating the movable upper ring and the packer heador the lower ring, and means For actuating the lovers synchronously.

In making a tile, an empty cylindrical mold casing placed on end on thelower or supporting ring, while the upper ring is maintained in raisedposition, after which the upper or retaining ring is lowered onto theupper end of the empty mold casing to hold it in position, means beingprovided to prevent the rotation oi the casing relative to the rings.The lower end of the casing is practitailly closed by the upper reducedend of the whirling packer head which projects into the casing a slightdis tance. The cement, concrete or other plastic material is nowdeposited in the mold. llelative movement vertically oi. the mold andpacker head now takes place, until the grooved bottom oi? the packerhead lies op posite the retaining ring, the body of the packer headextending above the mold. whereupon additional material may he "l ed tothe mold, atter which a reverse movement of the one relative to theother takes place, I until the parts are returned to their normalpositions. The retainer ring is now caused to rise, releasing the moldwhich is removed and an empty mold substituted therefor, whereupon thesame procedure is repeated.

The whirling packer head can be caused to move relative to the mold,which in that instance would be held stationary during the operation offorming the tile, but in the present instance we have shown the mold asbeing reciprocated relative to the whirling packer head, which latter isretained at a constant elevation.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates a framework braced as at 1, 1,and provided near one end with the standards 2, 2. One end of a verticalshaft 3 is stepped in a bearing 4 in front of the standards 2, 2, theshaft extending parallel with the standards and provided at its upperend with a packer head or former 5, the base of which is peripherallygrooved as at 6, the upper end being reduced as shown. The general shapeof this former is set forth in detail in our copending application filedFeb. 27, 1999, Serial No. 180,365, except that we have added theperipheral groove thereto. The shaft passes through a bracket bearing 7,projecting from the frame A and lies between the projecting horizontalarms 8, 8, of the frame. A pulley or other wheel 9 on the shaft isconnected directly with a source of power whereby the shaft is rotated.

One means of forming the mold is as follows: A pair of vertical guides10, 10, are mounted at their lower ends in the arms 8, 8, such guidesextending parallel and preferably in alinement with the shaft 3 in frontof the standards 2, 2. The upper ends of the guides are received in theprojecting upper ends of diagonal braces 11,11, carried by the frame andstandards, such projecting upper ends overhanging the forward ends ofthe arms 8, 8. Sleeves 12, 12 are slidingly mounted on the guides, thesleeves each being provided with inwardly projecting lingers 13, 13,overlapped by the ears 1st, 14, projecting from diametrically oppositepoints in the circumference of a supporting ring 15, on which the lowerend of the mold casing 16 is seated. The cars and fingers are releasablyand positively connected by bolts 17 or other suitable fastening meansso that supporting rings of varying sizes can be secured to the sleevesto enable the machine to make tile of different diameters.

In order to releasably retain the mold casing in position on thesupporting ring we provide a retaining ring 18 secured to sleeves 19slidable on the guides 10 in the same manner as described, in connectionwith the supporting ring and its sleeves.

The cylindrical mold casing 16 is of any convenient form that shown inmy copending application above referred to, such. casing being providedwith the handles 20 whereby it is placed on and removed from thesupporting ring. In order to prevent the rotation of the mold casing onthe ring when the whirling packer head is introduced thereinto, wepreferably provide the supporting ring with a stop 21 with which thehandles engage.

As heretofore noted, it is possible to reciprocate the packer headvertically rel.- ative to the mold or vice versa, to reciprocate themold relative to the packer head and in the accompanying drawings, wehave illustrated a machine wherein the mold casin and its rin s are reciarocated rel ative to the packer head.

The normal position of the casing is shown in Fig. 1, wherein the upperreduced end only of the packer head extends into the bottom of the mold,to prevent the material deposited in the mold from passing entirelytherethrough, the inclined wall 22 of the head leaving but a slightopening between itself and the supporting ring 15.

Fig. 2 shows the lowest position assumed by the mold casing, at whichtime the groove 6 of the head lies opposite the retaining ring 18, andas one means for effecting the movement of the mold casing between thesetwo positions, we provide a pair of levers 23, 23, the rear ends ofwhich are pivot-ally mounted on a rod 2 1 supported in brackets 25 onthe rear of the frame A, the levers extending forward in planes parallelwith the vertical planes of the arms 8. Preferably the forward portionsof the levers are provided with a downward curve intermediate theirends, the forward ends of the levers being connected by means of links26 to the radially projecting ears 2? on the sleeves 12, 12, supportingthe sustaining ring 15. These levers 23, 23, adjacent their rear endsare conveniently provided with anti-friction rolls 28, 28, resting uponcams 29, 29, mounted on a cam shaft 30, journaled on and extendingacross the frame A. This shaft may be conveniently driven from a pulley31 receiving its motion from any suitable source. Such pulley is mountedon a drive shaft journaled in the frame A, the drive shaft carrying agear 33 whose motion is transmitted by suitable gearing to the camshaft. The rotation of the cam shaft 30 causes the cams 29 to wipeagainst the levers 23 or the friction rolls 28 carried thereby, to raiseand lower the mold casing, the throw of the cams being arranged. toactuate the mold casing between the positions shown in Figs. 1 and 2respectively.

It is necessary that the retaining ring 18 be raised off of the moldwhen it is desired to remove a filled mold and substitute an empty onetherefor, and as one means for mechanically accomplishing this movementof the retaining ring, we provide the cam shaft 30 with the cams 36, 36,adapted to en gage anti-friction rolls 37 on a pair of levers 38, 3S,pivoted at their rear ends on the rod 24L, the torward ends of thelevers being connected by links 32) to the projecting lips ett) on thesleeves 1t), 19, to which the retaining ring 18 is connected.

The movements of the levers 2E) and 38 are synchronized .relative toeach other, that is to say, the cams 36 are preferably larger than thecams Q9 andv are so arranged on shaft 23) relative to such cams 29 thatwhen the latter have raised the mold :asiug to its highest limit otmovement, they will retain it in such position for a limited time,during which period the cams 36 will actuate the levers 38 to raise theretaining ring a suitable distance above the upper end ot' the moldcasing, whereby to rel :ase the latter and permit the (amrator to firstraise the casing so that its lower end will clear the reduced upper endof the packer head and then remove the casing from the machine and placean empty casing in position on the supporting ring. The depressedportions ot the cams 96 by this time, permit the levers :38 to descend,carrying with them the ring 18 which is automati "ally titted and restsupon the upper end of the empty casing, the retaining ring being held inposition by its own weight to which is added the weight of the links 39and levers 38.

The operation of so much of our machine briefly as follows: Assuming theparts to be in the positions shown in Fig. 1, the material is fed intothe empty mold casing in any convenient manner, the whirling packer head5 preventing the material from falling through the mold, and throwingthe ma terial by centrit'ugal action against the inner periphery of themold casing. The cams it? now descend, which permits the levers 233 tomove down ard, drawing with them the supporting ring. The mold andsuperposed retaining ring follow the supporting ring downward as thoughmade in one piece therewith. This downward movement;- of the mold casing:auses the whirling packer head to enter the casing and lirmly part; thematerial against the sides thereof. the extreme diameter oi" the packerhead adapted to have a sliding tit in the rings 15 and '18. hen the cams29 have reached the lower limit ot their throw, the parts are in theposition shown in Fig. 2, at which time the groove (l of the packer headlies opposite the retaining ring 18, the groove being of such width asto permit the entrance ol" additional material to the mold casing itdesired. The mold .asing remains .in its lowest position for a momentand is then eltwated by the cams 2S) and levers 2 -3, the upper orretaining ring being raised with the mold and supporting ring to itsoriginal position. it will be noted that each tile is twice engaged bythe packer head,

I I n which results in the :tormation of a compact,

smooth. article which is of the same strength or hardness, top andbottom. \Vhen additional material is added at the time the parts are inthe position shown in Fig. 2, a most compact, non-porous tile isproduced ot exceeding strength and hardness. When the mold casingascends to its highest position as above described, the tile is readyfor removal to accomplish which, the cams 29 are tormed with their outerends broadened to retain the sup )oi.'ting ring temporarily in raisedposition. Just as the mold attains such elevated position, the anus I36are timed to engage the retaining ring levers 239 to raise the retainingring 18 oil the mold, at which time the casing containiiuz; the complctcd tile is removed and an empty casing substituted thcrelor,whereupon the cams 236 permit the retaining ring to descend and lit uponthe upper end of the empty casing and the 't'oregoing operation isrepeated, the cams do being arranged to allord time in which to elt'cctthis renmval and substitution. The descent oi the mold casing relativeto the packer head operates to bring a down\\"ard pressure upon the headand shaft 3, as well as the step-bea ring at, to relieve which weprovide a ball bearing, the same comprising an inverted ball race ettkeyed to the shafttl, a second ball race {12 being supported againstrotary movement on the shelf t?) projecting from the frame, a series ofballs {l-Il: being interposed between the races so that downwardpressure on the shatlt is transmitted to the frame through the shelt 4thand ball bearing. And in order to prevent the material from entering theball bearing or the shal't b rarings T and t, we preferably key a plate1 7 on the shaft Ii below the head and above the bearings. l urthermore,in order to prevent the material 't'rom scattering upon the machine, weatliX a shield 15 (conveniently consisting oil. a sheet oi metal) to thestandards 2, 2, such shield being slotted as at l-(i to permit thelevers 23 to extend therethrough. it is also obvious that the operatingparts of the machine may be inclosed to a height even with thesupporting ring when the latter is in its highest position. it desired.

The machine is simpl sand compact, strong and durable, consisting ot but'lcw worlv'ing parts easily accessibls and not liable to get out oforder easily. The molded articles are not jarred by the machine in anymanner a l'ter completion. The til are delivered at an elevationconvenient lor removal and the packer had will center perlcctly with therings, because all tile ot' a given size are made on the same set otrings. The material can be asily l ed. to the molds withoutinconvenience from moving parts and rings, and packer heads of varioussizes can be substituted tor those shown, to produce tiles of dill'erentdiai'netcrs. The machine shown will make tile of different lengthsthroughout a predetermined range and by changing the cams to vary thethrow of the levers, tiles of a length outside this range can be made onthe machine.

In Fig. 6 is shown a battery of automatic tile machines consisting oftwo machines arranged side by side, employing but one cam shaft, andmeans for driving the same. The cams on the shaft 30 are preferably soarranged on the shaft that the mold casings of the two machines operatealternately, thereby rendering it possible for one man to take care ofboth machines.

It is evident that changes might be made in the form and arrangement ofthe several parts described, without departing from the spirit and scopeof our invention.

Having thus fully disclosed our invention, what we claim as new, is

1. A tile machine comprising a whirling packer head, a supportingmember, a mold casing removably mounted thereon, means for reciprocatingthe supporting member relative to the head, a retaining ring, and meanssynchronized with the means actuating the supporting member, for raisingand lowering the retaining ring relative to the mold intermediate thetwo strokes, constituting each reciprocation of the supporting member.

2. A tile machine comprising a rotating packer head, a mold casing, asupporting member on which the casing is removably mounted, a retainingmember on the casing, means for lowering the casing and subse quentlyraising the same, and sustaining it temporarily in raised position, andmeans for raising, sustaining and lowering the retaining member duringthe maintenance of the mold casing in raised position.

3. A tile machine comprising a rotating shaft, a packer head carried bythe upper end of the shaft, a movable supporting member, a moldremovably seated thereon and adapted to receive the head, means formoving the mold and supporting member relative to the packer head, andmeans for retaining the mold on the supporting member.

4-. A tile machine comprising a rotary packer head, guides arrangedlaterally of the head, upper and lower sleeves movable on the guides,rings releasably connected to the upper and lower sleeves respectively,a mold casing removably received between the rings and adapted toreceive the head, levers connected to the lower sleeves for moving themold and rings up and down, other levers connected to the upper sleevesfor moving the upper ring relative to the mold, and cams for actuatingthe levers, the cams so arranged relative to each other that themovement of the upper sleeves relative to the mold takes placeintermediate the up and down movement of the mold.

5. A tile machine comprising a rotary shaft, a packer head at the upperend thereof, guides located adjacent the shaft, a set of upper and a setof lower sleeves on the guides, a supporting ring releasably connectedto the lower sleeves, a retaining ring releasably connected to the uppersleeves, a mold casing removably received between the rings, the casingand rings lying in alinement with the head, two sets of pivotallysupported levers, links connecting the free ends of each set of leversto the upper and lower sleeves respectively, and cams for actuating thelevers, the action of the levers being synchronized to permit theretaining ring to release the mold intermediate the up and down movementof the latter.

6. A tile machine comprising a whirling packer head, a mold casingadapted to receive the head, and means for raising and lowering the moldcasing relative to the head, the latter provided with means adapted topermit the entrance of additional material to the mold intermediate thedown and up strokes constituting one reciprocation of the mold casing.

7. A tile machine comprising a whirling packer head, a mold casingadapted to receive the head, and means for raising and lowering the moldcasing relative to the head, the latter provided with a peripheralgroove on its base, adapted to permit the entrance of additionalmaterial to the mold intermediate the down and up strokes constitutingone reciprocation of the mold casin g.

8. An automatic tile machine comprising a rotary shaft, a packer head onthe upper end thereof, a ball race fixed to the shaft, a rigidlysupported ball race, balls interposed between the ball races, and a moldcasing movable relative to and adapted to receive the packer head.

9. A tile machine comprising a rotary shaft, a packer head at the upperend there of, bearings for the shaft, a plate on the shaft above thebearings, and a mold casing movable relative to and adapted to receivethe packer head, the plate located below the lowest limit of movement ofthe mold casing.

1.0. A tile machine comprising a frame, a rotary shaft, a packer head atthe upper end of the shaft, a mold casing movable relative to andadapted to receive the packer head,

levers pivoted on the frame and adapted to actuate the mold casing,means for operating the levers, and a slotted shield interposed betweenthe lever-actuating means and the mold casing, the levers projectingthrough the slots in the shield.

11. A battery of tile machines, comprising a plurality of frames, asingle cam shaft jonrnaled on the frames, a vertically extending rotaryshattt tor each tran'le, a packer head on each rotart shaft, a moldeasing cooperating with each packer head levers for operating the moldeasing relative to the packer head and cams on the shaft for actuatingthe levers, the cams so arranged on the shaft as to operate the moldcasings alternately relative to their respective packer heads.

12. A tile machine comprising a frame, a cam shaft journaled thereon,two sets of cams on the shaft, two sets of pivotally supported leversactuated by the cams, a rotating tile-forming member, a supporting ringin which the tile forming member is received, a mold casing seated onthe supporting member, one set of lovers pivotally connected to one ofthe members to reciprocate such member relative to the remaining member,and a retaining ring associated with the mold casing, the remaining setof levers connected therewith.

In testimony whereof, we atlix our signatures in presence oit. twowitnesses.

lIllIth [AN BESSER. JESSE I-l. BESSER. lVitnesses Ina lVlInnaUoIr,HARRIET L. Yams.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G.

